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His debut solo album 'The Wells of The World' (1997) was described by Hot Press's Oliver Sweeney as, 'not only a striking and individual musical statement, but one of the albums of this or any other year.' His compositions have been described as, "highly original in concept, full of imagery and wonder". Before embarking on his solo career, John honed his 'live' skills playing for over seven years with Cork based "The Stargazers" and more recently toured the globe for five years as singer with trad giants, Nomos. The hugely successful album 'Éist' featured two of Spillane's works, one of which was 'Eist do Bheal' performed beautifully by Sinead Lohan and written by Spillane and the Gaelic poet Louis de Paor. It's follow up, 'Éist Arís' (or 'Son of Éist' as John calls it!) again features one of John's songs. Spillane and De Paor, have often paired up on projects, John refers to their collaborations as 'The Gaelic Hit Factory'! At the end of 2000, following an invitation, the 'GHF' performed in several universities on the east coast of America and they got the year 2001 off to a good start by winning the prestigious Realta 2001 Irish song contest. With the prize involving one piece of Galway Crystal, the GHF decided to re-enter in 2002 and again won the competition. So now both mantelpieces are adorned with the Galway Crystal!! John's latest album title 'Will We Be Brilliant Or What?'
, which entered the Irish album charts at number 14(!) is a collection
of thirteen songs that tell the story of his life up to now. "Will
We Be Brilliant Or What?" was produced by Peter O'Toole (Hot
House Flowers) and Declan Sinnott. Released in May 2002 on the EMI Ireland
label. 2003 also saw Christy Moore, Sharon Shannon, Sean Keane, Karen Casey and others record and release some of John's songs John has his own Radio Show on RnaG. The show is called "Rogha John Spillane" and is broadcasted from 9.pm pm to 11pm pm every Sunday night. It'll be all in Irish of course. That's what they do on Raidíó na Gaeltachta, it's Ireland's Irish Language Station! In 2004 as well as writing the music and song, John produced and performed on a Brown Bag Films ("Give up your Auld Sins" animation, nominated for an Academy Award in 2003) animation called "The Boy Who Had no Story" based on one of John's songs "What's the Story Rory" It won an IFTA (Irish Film and Television Awards) under 2 categories, best animation and best children's program. On Sun 31st Oct '04. Towards the end of 2004 John met up with producer John Reynolds (Sinead O'Connor, Damian Dempsey, Indigo Girls) and started to work on his next album at John Reynolds's studio in London. April 1st 2005 saw the release of "Hey Dreamer" on EMI Ireland. John's third solo album went to number 4 in the Irish album charts on week of release and three weeks later it was still in the top ten. A sell out Irish tour followed, ending with a sell out show in Cork's Opera House (home town). John Spillane Press Release '05 JOHN THE RECORDING ARTIST. In Oct/Nov '04 John spent a few weeks
in London working on his new album for EMI with producer John Reynolds,,,, CORK, European Capital of Culture 2005 John's home town, Cork, has been designated European Capital of Culture for the year 2005, and John was honored to be invited to sing a new composition "Farranree", written specially for the occasion, at the official launch party on January 8th 2005, on Cork's main street, Patrick's Street, to an live audience of up to 100,000 and was also broadcast live on RTE television JOHN THE SONGWRITER It's been a great year for other people recording
John's songs. Christy Moore, Karen Casey, Sharon Shannon and Sean Keane.
Sean Keane has recorded three songs on his new album "The Valley
of the Heart" Sharon Shannon recorded "All the Way's You Wander"
on her latest album. George Murphy's first single in June '04 was a John
Spillane song "The Moon Going Home" Happy Day's in the Hit Factory!!
"The Moon Going Home" reached number 2 for two weeks in the
Irish charts. George's album "Dreamed a Dream" which reached
number 1 in the charts in its second week of release has two of John's
songs. JOHN THE SOUNDTRACK WRITER John recorded the soundtrack for Brown Bag Films (of the Oscar nominated "Give Up Yer Auld Sins" fame!! 2003) new animation "The Boy who had no Story". As well as writing the soundtrack John wrote and sang the song for the film "What's the Story Rory" "THE BOY WHO HAD NO STORY" was selected for the Jameson National Short Film Competition at the 49th Cork Film Festival, October 15th 2004. It was also screened (in competition) at the Boston Irish Festival... and the "2004 Chinese International Cartoon and Digital Arts Festival" in Changzhou City...It has also won an IFTA (Irish Film and Television Awards) under 2 categories, best animation and best children's program. On Sun 31st Oct '04……Happy Days!! JOHN THE DJ "Seal leis an Spealaire; Seal fánach
leis an Spealánach; Seal eile le ceol na Speile" This
is John Spillane's intro as the new persona - An Speal (The Scythe) -
he has adopted for his weekly RTÉ Raidió na Gaeltachta programme
which will now be extended by an hour on Sunday nights from 9pm - 11pm
on Anocht fm. His programme Rogha John Spillane has won over a a strong
listenership in recent times through his warm, friendly style and his
eclectic mix of music, including Irish traditional and contemporary world
music, snippets of lore and a regular poetry slot each week. John Spillane
is a well known figure in the world of music and has received both national
and international acclaim as a singer / JOHN THE TV PRESENTER John will host a new 10 part TV Series "Chúrsaí
Ceoil" for RTE1 Television scheduled for June '05 covering Irish
music over the past 25 years JOHN THE METEOR AWARD WINNER 2003 John went and won the Folk/Trad section at the prestigious Meteor Ireland Music Awards 2003 John was in the Best Folk/ Traditional Act section which also included Altan, The Chieftains, Kila, Christy Moore and Sinead O'Connor. Needless to say John wiped the floor with the lot of them....... 2004 WELL HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYBODY. THIS YEAR IS GONNA BE CALLED 2004. GET USED TO IT. I HAD A GREAT YEAR LAST YEAR, WITH LOADS OF GIGS IN IRELAND, SCOTLAND AND JAPAN, I WON THE BEST ACT/ FOLK AND TRADITIONAL AT THE IRISH MUSIC AWARDS WHEN I WENT AND WIPED THE FLOOR WITH THE CHIEFTAINS, CHRISTY MOORE, KILA, SINEAD O' CONNOR AND ALTAN. I STARTED MY OWN RADIO SHOW, ON RAIDÍÓ NA GAELTACHTA EVERY SUNDAY NIGHT AT 9.30. I HEARD SONGS I HAVE WRITTEN MYSELF, OUT OF MY OWN IMAGINATION, BEING SUNG AND RECORDED BY SEAN KEANE, SHARON SHANNON, CHRISTY MOORE, KARAN CASEY, FOUR SHILLINGS SHORT. THIS YEAR I'M GONNA KEEP ON WITH THE RADIO SHOW AND WRITING SONGS, HOPE I GET SOME GOOD ONES THIS YEAR. I'M GONNA RECORD MY NEXT ALBUM, NUMBER THREE, PROBABLY STARTING IN MAY, PLEASE GOD, AND I THINK THIS IS GONNA BE THE BIG ONE! THANKS TO EVERYONE WHO BOUGHT MY "WILL WE BE BRILLIANT OR WHAT?" ALBUM AND CAME TO MY GIGS AND VOTED FOR ME FOR MY BIG AWARD, WHICH IS ADORNING MY MANTELPIECE LIKE ( I wasn't able to get out the door of the house for about a month, with the swelled head like) ! THANK YOU ALL, JOHN 15-1-04. BROWN BAG
NEW ALBUM I am going to record a new album this year and have thrown about 25 songs into the pot so far. I have found a producer I would like to work with but I will not mention his name yet. I have a lot of songs in Irish and I have to decide what to do with them. Whether to do a separate album all in Irish later or to mix them together. There will be about 30 songs on the list by the time I start to record and it will be a question of "find the album". WISH ME LUCK! WILL WE BE BRILLIANT OR WHAT? YES. WE WILL. THE GAELIC HIT FACTORY The Gaelic Hit Factory is the name we give to the songwriting partnership of myself and Louis de Paor. SONGS IN THE IRISH LANGUAGE FOR MONEY AND FINANCIAL GAIN is the motto of the Hit Factory, but sometimes we write also FOR IRELAND AND FOR GLORY. Louis and myself went to school together and have been friends since we were about 14 years old. Louis is an Irish language poet and has published five collections of poems and won about every award there is for that sort of thing. Louis writes the words and I write the music and we have written about 20 songs so far, 3 or 4 in English and the rest in Irish, with a few hybrid, macaronic numbers thrown in. Karan Casey has recorded quite a few of our songs, as a solo singer and as a member of New York Irish supergroup SOLAS. We have also had songs recorded by Sinead Lohan, Meav, and me. THE GAELIC HIT FACTORY also does quite a few gigs every year. We are often asked to play in Gaeltacht (Irish speaking) areas of Ireland, and we have done gigs from Gort a' Choirce in Donegal to the Vermont State Penitentiary. Louis reads his poems, with translations if necessary, and I sing my songs, and we intertwine, so to speak. Look out for THE GAELIC HIT FACTORY playing at a venue near you this year! Check out the GHF page on this site for more details. MY RADIO SHOW ( Mo Chláirín Raidíó)
THEY'RE ALL SINGING MY SONGS Well Ladies and Gentlemen they're all singing my songs these days, they're all singing my songs! It turns out that the songs were brilliant all the time only we didn't realise it. Only I suspected it alright but I was the only one! It started again in April last year when Karan Casey's new album was released. It is called DISTANT SHORE and features two songs written by myself and Louis de Paor (The Gaelic Hit Factory), "The Song of Lies" and "Bata is Bóthar". Then in June I heard the great Christy Moore singing a beautiful version of "Magic Nights in the Lobby Bar" ( from "Will we Be Brilliant Or What?"). Then Sharon Shannon's new album was released in September, called Libertango, it featured an excellent version of my "All The Ways You Wander" sung by new kid on the block Pauline Scanlon, a lovely singer from Dingle, who is making a big impression. Then Sean Keane's new album was released in October featuring three of my songs, "The Only One for Me", "The Land you Love The Best" and the title track " Valley of The Heart". Sean is a very moving singer and I am honoured that he chose to sing these songs. Here's to more cover versions in the coming years. If I could just get Justin Timberlake to cover one now I'd be in clover, laughing all the way to the bank like. METEOR AWARD WINNER JOHN SPILLANE! Well it all happened like this! Due to the big success of my 2002 album "WILL WE BE BRILLIANT OR WHAT?" I nominated for a big award called THE METEOR IRELAND MUSIC AWARDS. My category was called BEST ACT/FOLK AND TRADITIONAL. Well that was all very well Ladies and Gentlemen until I saw who I was up against in my category like. First name on the list was THE CHIEFTAINS, then SINEAD O' CONNOR, then CHRISTY MOORE, then KILA, then ALTAN. Well I knew like when I seen all them names I hadn't a hope like, DREAM ON JOHN DREAM ON BOY. So off I went anyway up to the Point depot like, swanning around with the stars, meself and me ol' doll and then they calls out the nominees like, and then they calls out the winner and, to cut a long story short like ladies and Gentlemen.................I WENT AND I WIPED THE FLOOR WITH THE WHOLE LOTUVUM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Stephen Rea presents me with the GONG and I says me coupla words and went away off home with it where it sits now on the mantelpiece in the Hit Factory Like. HAPPY DAYS LADIES AND GENTLEMEN HAPPY DAYS! ENHANCED C.D - WE'RE GOING SAILING ANIMATED MUSIC VIDEO
"WILL WE BE BRILLIANT OR WHAT" TO BE RELEASED IN JAPAN IN FEB 2003.
JOHN SPILLANE, BRILLIANT @ SOURCE
JOHN & LOUIS'S WORK FEATURED ON SILVER SEA - THE NEW MÉAV ALBUM WELLS OF THE WORLD NOW AVAILABLE ONLINE!
REALTA 2002 SONG CONTEST
IRISH MUSIC MAGAZINE
SUCCESS FOR GAELIC HIT FACTORY!
WELL DONE EVERYONE - 'WILL WE BE BRILLIANT OR WHAT - HEADS FOR GOLD! OUTSIDE IRELAND - BUY ONLINE HERE
THE BOOKILL MEETS THE BOYS
BEO EXTENSIVE INTERVIEW WITH JOHN
RODRIGUEZ GUITARS ENDORSEMENT
The Wells of the World Re-Released "My first album "The Wells of the World" is available again after how many years ???? It's now available on my own label "Inspired Records" (Happy Days!!!) .....You can find the album at www.townsend-records.co.uk
Who!! Who would have thought it? Who would have thought it a few years
ago!! A top ten album a sell out tour of Ireland and to finish it off
a sell out at the Cork Opera House, Home Town GIG. Well!! I had a feeling
all right and of course Louis the poet knew it all the time (or so he
says). Cork, European Capital of Culture 2005
"Well lads,,,we did it again! swaning around the Point Theatre with
all the stars thinking that I hadn't a chance, up against Altan, Kila,
Lasairfhiona, Christy Moore and Sharon Shannon in the Best Folk/Traditional
Irish Music Awards category, not a ghost of a chance I was thinking to
myself and then the announcement "and the winner is John Spillane" well
the trill like! .... thank you all for so much for a great year, where
would I be without ye? and like I always say "Will we be Brilliant or
What?"
JOHN IN AFRICA
Programme four on 17/2/08 and repeated on the following Friday at 8pm. "Troubadour John Spillane heads upriver in Senegal in pursuit of the African Griots or praise singers, who inspire him to dedicate his new African composition to the father of Senegalese music, Baaba Maal". LET ME TELL YOU ALL ABOUT MY TRIP TO AFRICA! Well now ... October 2007 and I have just returned from a 12 day MUSICAL VISIT to SENEGAL, WEST AFRICA. I was invited by TG4, Ireland's Irish Language (Gaelic) TV station, to take part in a new TV series called CEOLCHUAIRT (Musical Visit). They are sending various Irish musicians to different countries around the world to play music with, interact, and learn from local musicians. We landed in DAKAR on October 11th, in intense heat. DAKAR is Senegal's capital, and it is a bustling, very colourful, buzzing city full of the most beautiful people on earth, sheep, cattle, overcrowded multi-coloured buses and trucks, children everywhere. It was the last day of Ramadan, and we were celebrating the festival of Korité. Well first I was presented with my BOOBOO, African dress, and then off to the Mosque with my new friend SOULEYMAN, and his sons, to take part in the chanting, prayers, and to listen to the Korité speech of the IMAM. Then we slaughtered a sheep in the back garden, cooked and ate it, while I visited with SOULEYMAN'S family, his 3 wives and various children. That afternoon I played some of my own songs with a group of Guinean Drummers and Musicians, and sang songs with some of the kids of DAKAR. Next day we visited well known SENEGALESE singer CHEIKH LO, a member of the BAYE FALL Brotherhood, Cheikh sports the long dreadlocks and huge belt that mark out that fraternity. We played very well together and it just goes to show that music is a universal language! Another day found us on the Isle de Goréé, the chief station for the deportation of slaves from West Africa to the Americas. A World Heritage Site and a museum to the appalling history of man's inhumanity to man. " If all the sea were ink, and all the sky were made of paper, There would not be enough ink or paper to write down the human suffering caused by the Slave Trade" On Goréé I had the great pleasure of playing and singing with the great Fanta Mbacke Kouyaté, who had us all in tears with her rendition of a traditional song describing a family torn apart by the Slave Traders. Our local musical guide Gabi Ba, a wonderful musician, took us up north to his home village of MBUMBA, where we experienced African village life, including the BAUDI LAMDA, gathering around the fire at night with crazy drumming and wrestling, also a visit to the GRIOTS OF PETET, local traditional musicians. The trip culminated with a visit to the home of the great BAABA MAAL in PODOR. We were welcomed warmly by BAABA and I sang him a song I had written in his honour, in Irish, Gaelic and Pular. He rewarded me with a beautiful African painting, and then I played with BAABA and his band, including the great MANSOUR SECK, an African/ Irish mélange! IT WAS BRILLIANT! WHAT A BUZZ! Sincere thanks to TG4, Magamedia in an Spidéal, Paddy, Laura, Colm and Réamoinn. HAPPY DAYS IN THE HIT FACTORY! ROCK ON! John Spillane |
John
is a native of Cork, the county he lovingly describes as 'the centre of
the universe' and it has been a huge influence on this singer / songwriter.
Vocally, Spillane is quite unique with an almost sean nos like element
and has been described as having a voice 'full of honesty, commitment
and sensitivity'. 
The
2nd 
The Gaelic Hit Factory (the songwriting team of John Spillane and Louis de Paor) won the annual song competition of Radio na Gaeltachta (REALTA 2002) for new contemporary songs in the Irish language in Casla, Conamara, with our new song "Bata is Bothar". The song was performed by John Spillane and Madrai an Bhaile (The Male Mammal Orchestra) featuring seven big, rough, wild and free male mammals; Con O' Drisceoil, Liam Heffernan, Johnny McCarthy, Pol Frost, Colm Murphy, Tomas O'Cannainn and Mick Daly. Thank you men. Thanks also to Ronan O'Snodaigh who chanted on the earlier version.The song deals with the tragic irony of the bad attitude in this country to immigrants,refugees and asylum seekers considering our history of our own people going all over the world for hundreds of years as emmigrants, refugees and asylum seekers. Roinneamar an chead ait sa chomortas le Fearghail O Bearra lena amhran alainn " Na Laetha a Bhi" Fear Ple dhuinn go leir. Go raibh maith agaibh go leir, John. 
When
John Spillane released his first solo release, "Wells of the World", reviewers
were tripping over themselves with numerous accolades. Almost every one
said it was the best contemporary CD of the year. For example, award-winning
broadcaster, author and producer, P.J. Curtis says, "John is one of the
most talented, significant singer/songwriters to emerge in Ireland in
the last decade. His work with Nomos and his debut solo album "Wells of
the World" is proof of this. The album shows John to be an emerging artist
who has something to say and says it with commitment, style and authority.
I know few singer/songwriters who express such an acute sense of place
as does John or who is so totally engaging in "live" performance. He is
also a true poet and wraps his poetry in memorable melody. This is one
of the truest Irish voices of his generation". Even Christy Moore, who
has recently recorded one of Spillane's songs, "Johnny Don't Go to Ballincollig",
says in his liner notes that "Wells of the World" was an undiscovered
gem of the 90's. more... 
John's new album was released on Friday 3rd May and entered the Chart's at number 14! The record is now available in your local record store! Track listing, The Dance Of The Cherry Trees, Will we be Brilliant or What?, Prince's Street, We're Going Sailing, Magic Nights in the Lobby Bar, Soon Child, I'm Going to Set You Free, Meet Me on the Midnight Shore, All the Ways You Wander, Seany Boo and the Big Blue Empty, Let the River Flow, Woman My Own, Back to the Well for Water.
John
was delighted to meet Ireland's football legend's Paul McGrath, Packie
Bonner and the Bookhill with the dream, Jason McAteer! John's third single,
"The Dance Of The Cherry Trees" was launched in Ireland on Friday 26th
April at a storming gig, in The Lobby Bar, Cork. This is the third single
from John's forthcoming album, "Will We Be Brillant Or What". The single
includes John's world cup contribution, "The Bookill with The Boogaloo".
OUT NOW!
Rodriguez,
John's choice of guitar for the past 6 years has given John an endorsement.
John recently collected his shiny new Rodriguez. This is one of only two
endorsements issued in Ireland. John's origional is featured on the cover
of the album! The history of Rodriguez guitars is as rich as the woods
used to make the instruments. Grandson of Manuel Rodriguez Maregui, a
flamenco guitar player of the last century and son of Manuel Rodriguez
Perez, himself a make of classical guitars, Manuel Rodriguez learned the
art of constructing a guitar first-hand. Using only the finest woods,
and hand forming the sides of each guitar to precise tolerances, Manuel
Rodriguez developed distinctive guitars fit for the world's finest artists.
‘Ceolchuairt’ an innovative new series for TG4 brings the cream of Irish musical talent on a personal pilgrimage to their very own musical Mecca. In each programme of the series, we hit the road with an Irish traditional musical artist as they undertake a voyage of discovery to a far-flung musical heartland, to find common ground, jam with the locals and unearth bizarre styles. From India to New York’s Harlem, from Bulgaria to the Basque Country, from Norway to Senegal: a diverse range of countries, sounds and personalities will give us the soundtrack for the musical melting pot that is ‘Ceolchuairt’. This is world music with a twist of Irish and a healthy dollop of craic along the way!